Chris and I have been together for a really long time. Like a really long time. Like, so long that when we started dating I still had braces and just started college. A running joke throughout our relationship has been my persistent wine induced proposals. After a glass or two of wine, I became notorious for proposing to Chris (this goes way back, I probably first proposed when I was 18). At the time of my “first proposal” Chris laughed and told me that I wasn’t allowed to propose, he had to do it. So, I of course took that as an invitation to continue to propose. Fast forward about 9 years and I started to get the feeling that Chris was actually going to propose (insert nervous anxiety here).

The day of our engagement started like most other days, other than the fact that it was New Year’s Day. We woke up late, went to one of our local coffee shops for bagels and coffee. I spent lots of time at the verizon store and got a new iPhone, Chris got a haircut, and we relaxed and watched Netflix. Because we both had the day off, we planned a night full of Italian food and seeing Sisters downtown. We headed to dinner and had a great time talking about all the things Chris wanted to achieve in 2016. This included lots of house projects, starting blogging again and more. When we wrapped up dinner I thought to myself… (okay well.. dinner is done, looks like it’s not happening tonight!). I am pretty sure that I was a little relieved because I was overthink everything.

We had some time before the movie started, so we headed to Uncommon Grounds to pickup hot chocolates before walking to the theater. It was when we were sitting at Uncommon that I got a little feisty (thanks, red wine at dinner) and asked him to ask me what I wanted to do in 2016. I started rambling off a lot of the same house projects he mentioned, blogging again, workout goals, etc. at the end I said “and I am pretty sure we should get married this year… Chris Makenzie, will you marry me?” he laughed and said “funny you should say that, I was about to ask you the same thing” and pulls out a box from his pocket. After the fact, he told me that he had had the ring for weeks and was waiting for me to propose first.

After he proposed, we decided to keep our plans and headed to the movie. After the movie, we called my parents and headed home. We didn’t tell anyone else until the next day. I love our story and seriously couldn’t have planned something more “us” if I tried. We decided that we wanted to plan a wedding for 2016, so we really buckled down and booked everything pretty quickly. At this point, we are less than five months away from our day and I couldn’t be happier.

On Friday {Halloween} night, Chris and I celebrated our eighth anniversary. Eight years is a long time, and this was a particularly monumental year. After living apart for a long time, this was the first year we lived together in our home. There are going to be bumps in the road and all that jazz, and there were. After trying to stay home for dinner last year to be there for trick-o-treaters, we decided early on this year that we would be shutting off all of the lights and dropping the dogs off elsewhere.

Can we talk about how awful Halloween is with dogs? Especially panicky wiener dogs? We knew that with Cooper recovering from his back surgery there wasn’t any way he could be home with the doorbell ringing constantly. So we packed up the car and dropped the dogs off at Chris’s parents where they never get any Halloween traffic. I felt guilty leaving the house dark and half expected to come home to eggs on the siding, but luckily we didn’t have any issues.

After dropping off the boys we headed to one of our favorite places for dinner and both got our favorite meals. We were planning walking around town for a while but decided to head back to his parents early and spend some time with them. I didn’t take any pictures of the night but it was really nice. I love that boy so darn much.

Well hello there! Here it is, my first blog post as a 26 year old. I have been celebrating all weekend with family and friends and feel like I need a weekend from my weekend to recover. Friday was spent with my mister– I had the most delicious eggs benedict ever and then we spent the day relaxing.

Friday night we went out to dinner with my parents and had a great time. The Olde Bryan Inn is one of my favorites in Saratoga Springs, if you are local to upstate NY and haven’t been there, check it out! I had the turkey dinner sandwich and only ate half (damn homemade potato chips at the bar!). Saturday we had dinner at Stout and saw comedian Amy Schumer at the Palace Theatre in Albany. Amy was hilarious. Such a funny (and very very dirty) lady.

I had such a great time with my library loves!

Reflections on 25:

I am honestly looking forward to being 26. 25 was a rough year for me. Lots of ups and downs and my fair share of anxiety. So far it has been a great few days! I am hoping to string together as many of those days as I can. After avoiding the blog for the majority of last year, I started blogging again because I find a lot of happiness in posting. I have been blogging for over 5 years (wowza!) and really enjoy looking back and seeing how my life has changed. Looking back at recipes, birthday and holiday recaps and the ever evolving love for my Squashington is a one of the most amazing parts of blogging. This year I am going to really try to focus on the things that make me happy.

I would love advice on how you stay happy. If you deal with any sort of anxiety, how do you get past it?

If you have been reading this blog for a while, you probably know that Chris and I are both still living at home. As much as we have wanted to move in together or get an apartment, financially that was never in the cards for us. Being in school fulltime and working part-time makes it hard to afford anything, especially an apartment. Chris has been successfully working in his field for just over a year and I have been lucky enough to find a job as a librarian immediately after graduating. We have been saving and saving for the last few months and are finally making steps in the direction of home ownership.

Some of the things that I have learned so far include:

Make sure you have your stuff together– once you begin the pre approval process, banks are going to want to see pay stubs, years of W2’s and a good idea on what you are spending monthly now (car loans, student loans, rent, etc.).

Knowing where you want to live is also important. If you are looking to live in a range of different counties, there will be a range of different property taxes and mortgage taxes. These things add up!

Know what you are willing to spend, and have an idea of what your budget will look like. Chris and I know what we each make, what our monthly spending looks like and know what we want in a house.

Don’t fall in love with something you see online. Because we knew that we would (hopefully) be house hunting in the next few months, I have already been seeing what is available in my area with apps like Zillow and Trulia. These apps make it SO easy to narrow down available homes, BUT they make it easy to fall in love with something. If you aren’t willing to drop money right away, use these apps as a guide for what MAY be available when you are really looking. Other wise, you may get your heart broken!

Seeing what your money can buy in different areas is nice a great feature of apps like Zillow and Trulia. Chris and I originally wanted to look in one town near by, but with the help of apps like this we realized that there really wasn’t anything we were interested in. We now know what areas look good to us.

Know your stuff! If you are looking to get a First Time Home Buyers loan (FHA), have an understanding of what types of fees and insurances are required. Sometimes, it may be more beneficial to get a traditional mortgage if you have a large enough down payment.

ALSO- If you are looking to get a FHA loan, you will probably be required to be in the home for a certain amount of time (about 5 years). Make sure that the home you are looking at will be enough house for you in that amount of time! Having a 2 bedroom 1 bathroom home may be ideal now- but down the line, that may not be enough space!

If you do hear the pitter patter of little feet in your future, know what school district the home you are looking at is in.

DO NOT go through the process alone. Find a parent or friend that has done this before. They will be able to help you think of all of the things that are important when shopping around. Does the home you are looking at have well water? city water? community water? If you are looking at a condo, what types of fees will you be paying a month? Is the home you are looking at structurally sound? Is it on a high water table? These crazy questions are just a few of what I have had run though my brain the past couple of weeks.

Do multiple drive-bys. If you find a home you like, drive by it at all times of the day. Maybe traffic is HORRIBLE near the neighborhood in the morning, maybe the house is on a truck route that is hoppin’ at all times of the night. Knowing this information will be critical once you move in!

This app was not sponsored or anything by anyone- just a few tips that I have learned over the past couple of months! Once we actually get a place of our own I will make sure to recap the entire process.

2011 was a wonderful year.

I was lucky enough to travel to new places (D.C & Philly) as well as visit some of my favorite spots (Boston & Maine) with new friends and those I love. I have made many new friendships that I keep close to my heart, as well as continue to cherish those that I keep near and dear. I started the year by jumping into a master’s program- and wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. There have been some stressful semesters and lots of time in the car, but I can say now that it is all worth it. I ran two races in 2011 and pushed myself to be better. 2012 will see many more! I have learned so much about myself and can’t wait for 2012 to be even better.